Uncle Ali, as he likes to be called, does have some restrictions, Spawton says.

"Sometimes he just does not feel good, is a bad mood or sick," she tells the German publication. "Also, if he has the feeling of being not dressed very neatly. Or if he thinks that I have already photographed him in a certain outfit."

Spawton and Ali have bonded over the course of their joint project, and Spawton says she now considers them to be close. "Once we went together on a trip to pick apples, which was very nice," she said.

Word of Ali's new-found fame has even reached his native land, where he is seen as a fashion maverick, breaking down age barriers in a world typically ruled by Bright Young Things.

And it seems Ali's might not be minding his accidental celebrity, either.

Writes Spawton in her latest blog entry: With the help of Google Translate I tried to explain to Ali today that he might be recognised on the u-bahn…he seemed quite pleased."